[drmaa-wg] drmaa_wif*() Functions

[Roger Brobst]

In a previous e-mail, Daniel Templeton wrote:
> I'm now working on the drmaa_wait() function and its helpers, and I've 
> run into an inconsistency.  In the language independent and former C 
> specs, the drmaa_wifexited() function is defined as returning non-zero 
> if the job has ended normally and zero if the job has ended normally but 
> has no exit status available. 
> So far so good.  

drmaa_wifexited should return non-zero only when an exit status
can be obtained from drmaa_wexitstatus.  
An exit status can only be obtained if the job ended normally.

> It then goes on to say that 
> if drmaa_wifexited() returns non-zero (non-zero == normal exit), 
> then more information is available from drmaa_wifsignaled() and 
> drmaa_wifaborted().  Huh?

Therein is the problem. It read something like:
    if drmaa_wifexited returns zero, then more information is 
    available from drmaa_wifsignaled() or drmaa_wifaborted().

Nice catch.

> Signaling and Aborting are not normal exit methods.  Those are abnormal. 
>   However, according to the spec, there's no way to say that the job 
> exited abnormally.
> The example in the C binding spec treats a return of zero from 
> drmaa_wifexited() as meaning the job exited abnormally.  That's also how 
> I interpreted it in the Java language binding spec.
> What was the actual intention here?
> 
> Daniel